Safety



(No Model.)

J. HODGES.

3 Sheets SAFETY APPLIANCE FOR ELEVATORS.

Patented Oct. 23,

Sheet 1.

N, PETERS lhoiwln vogmphcr, Waduilugion. 0.6.

(No Model.) 3 SheetsSheet 3.

J. HODGES. SAFETY APPLIANGE FOR ELEVATORS.

No. 287,287. Patented Oct. 23, 1883 Affest I v m/emior. W @fi W NPETERS. Pllola-Lllhngmphur. Washmglnn. 0.13v

NITED STATES JOHN IIODGES, OF WESTFIELD, NEWV JERSEY.

SAFETY APPLIANCE FOR ELEVATORS SPECIFICATION forming part of'LettersPatent No. 287,287, dated October 23, 1 883,

Application filed August 22, [883.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN HODGES, of the town of VVestfield, county ofUnion, and State of New Jersey, have invented a new and useful SafetyAppliance for Elevators, which invention is fully set forth in followingspecification. a

The figures of the accompanying drawings represent my improvements.

Figure 1 is a front view of an elevator-car and its upright sidesupports with my improvement attached, as the same appears when theelevator-car is descending. Fig. 2 is a central vertical section of thesame. Fig. 3 is a front view of an elevator-car and its upright sidesupports, with my improvement attached, as the same appears when theelevator-car has been allowed to drop so as to engage the dogs orprojections.

The object of my invention is to provide means which will effectuallyprevent an elevator from falling in case of accident.

In the usual upright supports or posts between which the elevator-carslides, I provide a series of dogs or projections so pivoted or hingedthat they will at once fall out by their own gravity and engage thebottom of the elevator-car shouldit descend against them. Immediatelybelow and on each side of the parts of the floor of the elevator-carwhich would rest upon the dogs or projecting hinged pieces when theyhave dropped by their own gravity,

- I construct of iron or wood a bar or piece,

the object of which is to cause the dogs or proc 5 jections to be raisedup out of the way of the floor or bottom of the elevator-car, so as toenable the same to descend. These side pieces are so beveled that whenthey rest up against the bottom of the car the edges of the hingedprojections strike them and are engaged by them as the elevatordescends, and are slid back out of the way of the floor of theelevator-car, so as to enable it to proceed. 1 In passing upward theelevator-car itself pushes the projections out of the way; but indescending downward the hinged projections are only pushed out of theway when the beveled pieces above spoken of are in position. A treadlewithin the elevator-car serves to raise the beveled piece into positionagainst the under side of the floor of the elevator-car, thus enablingit to descend; but the moment the foot is taken (N0 model.)

away or the pressure otherwise relieved from the treadle the beveledpiece drops at once inward and away from the point at which it wouldengage the hinged projections, so as to allow them to fall outward inwhole or in part, and thus arrest the elevatorcar as it moves downward.

In the drawings, a is the floor of the elevator-car; b b, the verticalsupports up and down which it slides. a c are hinged dogs or projectingpieces. (I dare the beveled pieces that serve to press back the dogsinto such a position that they will allow the elevator-car to passdownward without being arrested. 6 e are arms attached at right anglesto the beveled pieces (I d. f is a piece upon which the parts 6 crest. gis a rope upon which f hangs. h h k are pulleys over which saidrope'passes intothe interior of the elevator, where it is finallyfastened to the treadle, i.

The operation of the mechanism shown in the drawings is as follows:WVhen no weight is resting on the treadle i, the piece f descends by itsown gravity, as do also the pieces e d withdraws the beveled piece (I,so that it will not press back the projections 0 out of the way of thefloor of the elevator-car, so that they are at liberty to .fall withtheir own gravity into such a position that the floor a of the ele'vator-car will engage against the tops of the projections e, and thusinstantly stop it, as shown in Fig. 3. If, however, the treadle t ispressed upon by the foot, the rope g raises the piece f, whichconsequently raises the pieces 6 (I, so that the beveled part of d isthrown into the position shown in Fig. 1, and asthe elevatordescends'the points of the projections 0 slide against the beveled sideof d, so that they are pressed back out of the way, and the elevatorpasses freely down. The

resting upon the sides of the piece f. This parts are then in theposition shown in Fig. 1.

not descend without being arrested by the 'of that shown.

projections 0 unless the treadle z ispressed down. The moment thepressure is relieved from it the descent of the car is arrested. It willbe obvious that a. very slight descent of the parts (I will cause atleast a portion of the projections c to engage with the floor of theelevator, and thus become operative. In case of accident, therefore, theremedy can be applied instantaneously. The distance apart of theprojections a one above another may be varied. From a foot and a half totwo feet would be ample for all practical purposes. The treadle couldalso act by means of a lever or levers, or other suitable mechanism,instead An inferior result could be produced by using a hand-lever orother suitable mechanism to be worked by hand instead of a treadle.

I am aware of Letters Patent of the United States No. 177,290, dated May9, 1876. The apparatus therein described would not efiectually answerthe purposesof my invention. In that appliance the projections designedto arrest the elevator-car slide in grooves horizontally by means of aspring, while in my apparatus they must revolve in an arc of a circle bymeans of a pivot or'equivalent means of allowing them so to move in anarc. I11 this -manner a certainty of action is produced in my apparatusthat would not be produced in the apparatus described in the patentabove mentioned.

I am aware, also, of Reissued Letters Patent No. 10,127, dated May 30,1882. The con struction shown in that patent would not answer thepurpose of my invention. In that construction the projections do not getinto position to engage and arrestthe car until after the accident hashappened. This patent does not show projections normally in position toarrest the descent of the car, nor apparatus for removing suchprojections seriatim as the car descends.

\Vhat I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In combination with an elevator-car, a series of projections normallyin position to arrest the descent of said car, and adapted to be rotatedby said car out of itspath as it ascends, substantially-as described.

2. Projections adapted to be rotated into position to arrest anelevator-car, in combination with mechanism to engage the projectionsand throw them out of the way of the elevator-car as it descends,substantially as described.

3. Projections adapted to be rotated into position to arrest anelevator-car,.in combination with mechanism to engage the projectionsand throw them out of the way of the elevator-car as it descends, andcontrolling mechanism to throw the mechanism engaging the projections inand out of the position which en-- gages the projections, substantiallyas described.

4. I11 combination with an elevator-car, a series of pivoted dogs orprojections adapted to fall by their own weight into position to arrestsaid car as it descends, and to be thrown by said car out of its path asit ascends, substantially as described.

5. i The combination, with an clevator-car, of a series of rotatoryprojections normally in position to arrest the descent of said car,apparatus for engaging and throwing back said projections seriatim asthe car descends, and means for rendering the apparatus that engagessaid projections immediately inopera tivewhen desired, substantially asdescribed.

6. The combination, with an elevator-car, of a series of projectionsnormally in position to arrest the descent of said car, and adapted tobe thrown by said car out of the way as it ascends, and mechanism, asset forth, under the control of the operator in said car, for throwingsaid projections out of its way as it doscends, substantially asdescribed.

7. The combination, with an elevator-car, of a series of dogs orprojections adapted to fall by gravity into position to arrest thedescent of said car, beveled pieces carried by said car, and means formoving said pieces into and out of position to throw back said dogs orprojections as the car descends, substantially as described.

8. The combination of the elevator-car, the pivoted dogs or projections,the beveled pieces for acting on said dogs or projections to remove themfrom the path or the car, said beveled pieces being adapted to fall whenunsupeled pieces in their operative position, substantially asdescribed.

9. The projection c, the beveled piece d, and the controlling treadle,arranged and operating substantially as described.

10. The projections c, the parts (1 e, the piecesf, the rope g, withsuitable pulleys or 1 supports, and a treadle arranged and operatcdsubstantially as described.

IntestimonywhereofIhavesignedthis specification in the presence of twosubscribing j witnesses. JOHN HODG-ES.

WVitnesses B. F. LEE, R. A. PIPER.

